Unwholesome Habits

What are unwholesome habits?

They are unwholesome bodily actions, unwholesome verbal actions, and evil (unwholesome) livelihood.

These are called unwholesome habits.

And what do these unwholesome habits originate from?

Their origin is stated: they should be said to originate from the mind.

What mind?

Though mind is multiple, varied, and of different aspects, there is mind affected by craving/greed, by anger/hatred, and by ignorance/delusion (unknowing of true reality).

Unwholesome habits originate from this.

And where do these unwholesome habits cease without remainder?

Their elimination is stated: here a Monk abandons bodily misconduct and develops wholesome bodily conduct; he abandons verbal misconduct and develops wholesome verbal conduct; he abandons mental misconduct and develops wholesome mental conduct; he abandons wrong livelihood and gains a living by Right Livelihood.

It is here that unwholesome habits cease without remainder.

And how practicing does he practice the way to the elimination of unwholesome habits?

Here a Monk awakens enthusiasm for the non-arising of unarisen evil unwholesome states and he makes effort, arouses energy, exerts his mind, and strives. He awakens enthusiasm for the abandoning of arisen evil unwholesome states... He awakens enthusiasm for the arising of unarisen wholesome states... He awakens enthusiasm for the continuation, non-disappearance, strengthening, increase, and fulfillment by development of arisen wholesome states, and he makes effort, arouses energy, exerts his mind, and strives.

One so practicing practices the way to the elimination of unwholesome habits.

(Reference: MN 78.10)

In this Teaching from Gotama Buddha, he shares how craving, anger, and ignorance (unknowing of true reality) causes evil unwholesome habits to continue including in one’s own livelihood.

The Buddha explains that through abandoning bodily, verbal, and mental misconduct along with “wrong livelihood”, the unwholesome habits will be eliminated.

He explains the way to accomplish this goal to eliminate evil unwholesome habits is to develop wholesome bodily, verbal, and mental conduct with practicing Right Livelihood through applying Right Effort.

Through practicing “the way to the elimination of unwholesome habits”, a Practitioner “awakens enthusiasm” to eliminate unwholesome qualities and arise wholesome qualities. This is taught as part of The Eight Fold Path described as Right Effort.

Through practicing The Eight Fold Path, a Practitioner will eliminate all evil unwholesome habits. It is all unwholesome habits, originating with craving, anger, and ignorance (unknowing of true reality), that cause harm in the world, thus, harm will return to you. By causing harm in the world, it is the same as causing harm to yourself.

A wise Practitioner would choose not to cause harm to others because they know that harm will come back to them due to The Natural Law of Kamma. It is The Eight Fold Path that will guide a Practitioner to improve their life practice and the condition of the mind, such that, they will no longer choose to cause harm in the world and, thus, harm will not come back to you.

Detailed explanation of The Eight Fold Path is available in this same book series found in Chapter 5 of the book “Developing a Life Practice: The Path That Leads to Enlightenment” (Volume 1).